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 The Little Green Witch
by Barbara Barbieri McGrath, illustrated by Martha Alexander |
| ages 4-8 |
32 pages |
Charlesbridge Publishing |
June 2005 |
Hardcover |
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Little Red Hen, move over - a certain diminutive sorceress may actually have it worse. The Little Green Witch, written by Barbara Barbieri McGrath and whimsically illustrated by Martha Alexander, tells a mostly familiar story of housemates (or, in this case, hollow tree-mates), only one of whom actually carries her full weight.
The little green witch of the title does all the "unhousework" - spreading soot, hanging cobwebs, dirtying laundry, pulling "unsightly flowers in the garden" - while her roomies don't do much of anything. The ghost wafts over a steaming cauldron, the bat snoozes in the broom closet, the gremlin naps in the damp under the sink. It's of no surprise, then, when the witch discovers some pumpkin seeds but gets no help from any of these lazybones in planting the seeds, watering the seeds, picking or cleaning or carving the ripe pumpkins.
But naturally, when the witch has finished baking a nicely burnt pumpkin pie, everyone suddenly wants a piece of the action. That's where McGrath throws an ironic twist in the tale that will leave kids giggling and asking for The Little Green Witch long after Halloween has passed. This is a take on an old standard that pays
clever homage to the original without trying to outdo it.
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